Aliah and the Aawule (Closed to AngelofDeath)

[SweetPeril]

The wind wafted black smoke over the scene of utter desolateness. As she looked across the valley of her youth, destruction was everywhere. Never before could she have imagined such an end to her childhood. The acrid smell of death and agony filled her senses and caused her blood to boil. A tear rolled down her cheek as she gradually accepted that the horrific dream she had experienced a mere week prior hadn't conveyed the true despair and suffering now plainly seen and deeply felt.

Her village was gone, her people annihilated.

Aliah's mind drifted to the nightmare that awakened her. An empath since her infancy, she knew never to discount such psychic visages as appeared in her sleep. And yet this one was so different, so devastating to contemplate that she prayed without hope that it had represented no more than an aberration in the cosmic fabric of time and space. Such innocent and inaccurate aberrations had occurred in her dreams when she was very young but as her unwanted gift matured, they became less frequent and in fact vanished completely with the arrival of womanhood.

That awful dream! The sound of a thousand agonized screams, the heat of an inferno of flames, the smell of burnt flesh, of spilled blood, and then...nothing. A silence as overpowering in its significant as anything she ever experienced in life.

She arose and extricated her nude form from the cozy warmth of her bed coverings and lit a single votive candle. She walked to a roughly hewed table by the door of her bedchamber and picked up an artlessly cast bowl filled with water. She brought it to her lips drinking deeply. She walked to her closet and in so doing passed the full-length mirror, the one adornment of her otherwise austere room. She paused considering the image of herself that stared back at her.

Her beauty though unparalleled in these regions was almost laughable she thought. Why have the gods seen fit to bestow so cerebral and spiritual a woman as she with such dramatic and earthy physical attributes as these? Wouldn't possession of such curves have been cherished all the greater by a more self-absorbed woman and one more given to the carnal desires than she?

Though only slightly taller than the average woman of her realm, her reflected visage conveyed great strength and grace. Her lines were both voluptuous yet subtly executed. Aliah's face was gentle despite being inscrutable as well. Her eyes were dark yet strangely luminous. She hated her lips thinking their rich vermilion color and fullness too obscene for one cherishing her own choose of celibacy.

Her skin was smooth and alabaster despite the sun exposure she daily experienced, a paradox she'd never pondered. Her neck was clean and graceful, her shoulders strong and muscular though not overwrought.

Like her lips, Aliah's breasts had always engendered a feeling of unease. Large, firm, flawlessly sculpted as if by a master; she knew that they were envied by the other women around her. She was also painfully aware of the different sort of response they elicited from the men. Would that they could have been less prominent, less provocative she thought. Amongst her three sisters, why had SHE been the only one burdened with such potent charms as these?

Her belly was smooth and powerful, the result of the daily toil of life. Her legs and arms equally powerful and no less impressive.

Then, there was that special mysterious triangular thatch residing within. Unlike the fashion of most women of the realm, she eschewed the custom of shaving there finding such behavior an affectation. She rather preferred the natural impression her unshorn vulva conveyed.

With the most barest of self-recriminations and internal struggle she opened her closet and dressed herself. Though a healer throughout her life and a superbly trained and devoted one at that, today she would clothe herself for battle. She carefully bore the heavy leathers she'd thought she'd never wear. She bound her bounteous assets though unable to conceal them completely, she then covered herself in the accouterments of war. At last, she hefted the short, heavy sword which was the trademark of those who had trained her in the art of death. She sheathed it, grabbed her heavy satchel, and made her way to her grandfather's room.

Aliah entered softly. He was already awake as he lay in his bed...expecting her. She kissed him lightly on the lips. Few words passed between them and less were even necessary. She knew that as an empath like herself, he'd had the same vision. With that, she left the warm confines of her simple home and headed for what would be a conflagration of unimaginable scope.

After many days of travel, here is where she found herself as she surveyed what remained of her village. Passions she'd never known were brought to the fore as she considered her countrymen's fates. Their bodies, abused and defiled, lay everywhere. Smoldering fires were what remained of the small cabins, the insignificant shops, and the structures of no importance to anyone save their owners. What vile people could have committed such heinous atrocities?

Then, she heard a heavy step. Her senses ramped up instantly. She unsheathed her sword ready to destroy and savage even the lowliest water carrier were he in the smallest part an instrument of her people's destruction. And then, from one of the many shrouds of black smoke, there emerged a presence...a towering presence.

Suddenly, fear and anger was replaced with awe as she gazed upon the tall, massive creature which now stood before her on this awful dawn. Her eyes drifted unerringly to the amulet around his neck. She recognized its significance without hesitation. He was of a warrior people, the frightful but thought to be benevolent Aawulat.

He was majestic as he stepped forward and stood before her. Aliah had never seen an Aawule but had certainly heard tell of them. This one was every bit as magnificent as the whispered legends regarding them had suggested. His coarse, terrible beauty and his bearing was incomparable. His height, perhaps seven or eight inches greater than hers, and his extraordinary musculature was almost inconceivable. Aliah stepped back, momentarily too amazed to even speak in his presence...

 

[AngelofDeath]

Jendrak shook his head as he survived the ruined village, bodies strewn about like garbage. The sight disgusted the warrior, it was nothing but unnecessary slaughter, done because it was possible. Women, children, the old and sick, all had been slain right along side the men. The Aawule were warriors born and bred and thrived on battle, but this was a massacre, something they didn't condone. Even if they had killed every weapon bearing man, the women, children and the old would have been spared. This had been done to drive a point home, that their murderers held not just the lives of those they met in battle in their hands, but also those of their families.

The Aawule warrior had been out for a ride to clear his head, too many thoughts had been on his mind and far too many women of his village after him for themselves or their daughters. Good looks coupled with his fighting skill and his parentage made him a much sought after match. Thick black hair hung to his shoulders in typical Aawule fashion, but the sides of his scalp were shaved, showing his status as a warrior, not that it was needed. His size alone and the slight harness to his face gave it away. Bronze skin was stretched of skilled and trained muscle. Battle scars decorated his skin here and there. Other than the amulet around his neck proclaiming him to be Aawule, Jendrak wore nothing more than a pair of worn boots and equally worn pants. It didn't help matters that he'd had his fair share of lovers and all of them, even the most stoic female warriors had sung his praises of his bed skills.

The trip for fresh air as well as peace and quite had been cut short when the shifting wind brought the smell of fire and death to his nose. He could have ignored it, it wasn't his problem to deal with, not his people to care for, but still he had nudge his horse in the direct of the smell until he could see the thick plumes of smoke rising from the village. It wasn't just curiosity that had prodded him forward, but the sense that what had happened would play some part in his life.

The last thing he had expected however as he searched the burnt out homes for any survivors, there were none, was for a woman to come riding up. At first Jendrak had stayed hidden to gauge her purpose for being at the village. That became clear as soon as she was close enough for him to see her in detail. The grief in her eyes was palpable as well as the rage that simmered underneath. This had been her home, or she had been close to those who had once lived here.

Stepping out to where he could see him, he held back a smile as she whirled towards the sound of his steps, ready to face any and all that were in her way. She was small and pale, delicate looking, nothing like the female warriors he was used to seeing, but he could still appreciate the sight before him, both as a man and as a warrior from the way she held the sword. The woman before him, held the sword with skill. She wasn't just a girl playing dress up with someone else's armor and sword.

Holding his hand up as he saw her eyes run over him, stopping at his neck and then recognition fill them he spoke, "I mean you no harm little one. I was out riding when I smelled the smoke and came to investigate. The animals who did this were long gone."

 

[SweetPeril]

"I mean you no harm little one. I was out riding when I smelled the smoke and came to investigate. The animals who did this were long gone."

The immediacy of the Aawule's words jolted her back from the moment of reverie she'd allowed herself. 'Little one?', she thought to herself. 'Does he think me a child? A trifle?' She rose to her full height, perceptibly throwing her strong shoulders back drawing attention to a voluptuous, well-muscled physique clearly not that of a girl's. She quickly calculated the reliability of his words, her gift of intuition sure. Aliah re-sheathed her weapon.

Her dander up, she eyed him coldly, perhaps exaggeratedly so. In truth, she'd never encountered anyone like him. "So you were not a part of this?" she asked with perhaps more bravado than she possessed at the moment. "That is fortunate then...for if such were the case, one of us would soon be departed from this forsaken world."

She scanned the valley once more, still not comprehending the full extent of the devastation. At last she turned again to him. Despite her profound loss, she couldn't get over him. What little she knew of the Aawulat was surely suspect she'd thought...until now. Her teachers' stories of their approach to war had been loud and effusive in their praise. The ancient texts did indeed document some of their exploits.

Their prowess in things carnal was something else altogether. Whispered accounts from girls who certainly knew nothing of what they spoke had bombarded her ears as she was growing up. Even older women who surely should have known better were not immune from poetic musings of the Aawulat's stamina and forcefulness with their mates. Interestingly, such musings were not limited to the males. The females too were said to be imbued with a potency capable of destroying lovers possessing a substandard constitution.

She'd always discounted these sophomoric stories being the single-minded woman she wished to be. All her life she'd cast aside the trivialities of love and sexual pleasure. It was no secret that she'd made herself off-limits to men and love. Her celibacy wasn't founded in morality but rather in practicality. Her feminine essence had never been breached simply because such adolescent fumblings would direct her away from her goals. There was so much to learn. Her medical and martial studies had consumed her. Her standards of excellence and her drive to succeed allowed her no less.

And yet now, here, at this moment, as she again permitted her mind to wander one last time, she felt a pang stir within her. 'Gods how he was beautiful,' she thought. She contemplated his rather unorthodox battle dress. 'It was true. They do forgo even the lightest of armor.' The Aawulat, both males and females, had even been described on occasion to enter battle completely nude. Such a lack of protection was said to insure that they'd never assume a defensive posture in combat...nor to ever accept defeat.

Such improbable stories had amused her in the past but now as she observed his magnificent bare chest, she was transformed into a believer. She couldn't get over his stature and his wondrous muscularity.

At last she confronted the reality before her. Completely businesslike, she asked the one question that mattered: "Do you know who did this thing?"

 

[AngelofDeath]

Jendrak watched the woman before him bristle with silent anger at being called "Little one". Apparently it came off as insulting, but he had to admit when she stood straighter, he took silent appraisal of her. Yes she was shorter than him, but not by much. The armor she wore only slightly hid that the gods had gifted her with generous breasts and hips. He was drawn from his wondering of what she looked like without the armor when she spoke again.

"That is fortunate then...for if such were the case, one of us would soon be departed from this forsaken world."


"Were I apart of this, most of this village would still be alive. The Aawule do not kill the weak and defenseless. What good can come from cutting down women, children and the old and sick?" He understood her anger, so he didn't take insult at what she had said.

"Do you know who did this thing?"

Jendrak walked over the to the blackened remains of one body and bent down. Carefully he pried open one curled fist, and pulled out a torn piece of cloth, the skin beneath it was untouched. No that wasn't right, it had been touched, by evil. Getting to his feet he flashed the red and gold emblem to her, "Jun Horde. A small band had been seen coming up from the south, but it was thought to be simply a rumor."

He looked around and shook his head, "Your people didn't stand a chance against them. They struck just before dawn, when very few were awake and even less ready to draw arms." He pointed to the way the bodies had fallen, "Some were caught off guard as they came out of their homes, others were killed where they lay. Any who ran were run down by the Jun who were still mounted." He shook his head throwing out the sound of screams of the dying and the defiled.

"I saw hoof-prints breaking off in two directions one back south, probably with whatever goods they could make off with and possibly a few women and girls as I saw footprints amidst the tracks but no bodies laying nearby as if they had been slain. The other set head west. No doubt to join another group or to rain down more death and chaos."

Looking back at her he gave the woman a shot nod and bow, "I am Jendrak of the Aawule and my hands are yours if you wish help to tend your dead." With just the two of them it would still take most of the day and by herself it would take at least two to do so.

 

[SweetPeril]

Aliah's blood boiled as she heard the Aawule's account of what transpired. She knew instantly that his words ushered the truth. In him, she sensed a compassion, but also a sadness that seemed uncharacteristic given what has been said and written of the Aawulat. 'Puzzling', she thought. Her trust in him came without impediment. She immediately sensed in him a psychic connection. Their thoughts were of a single mind. They were two strong creatures sharing a bond of horror.

His rough exterior betrayed a deep, almost spiritual interior she thought as she gently probed his mind. This she did in as unobtrusive a manner as possible; as she had been taught by the greatest empaths her people had sired. Through his eyes, she saw the battles he'd fought, the lives terminated at the point of his sword or even his very hands.

In mere moments, it was clear to her that he was no ordinary Aawule and that by his people's wondrous standards, he was an elite specimen. This Jendrak was of a category by itself, looked up to even by his elders.

Of course, with delicacy, she supressed a smile as images of his prolific sexual conquests also crossed her mind's eye. She was unable to overlook visions of the almost religious ecstasy that marked the countenances of untold Aawule warrioresses. 'Oh the things he has seen, this proud warrior,' she thought; 'and this proud cocksman.'

She stepped towards him, her horse following obediently from behind. She stood at the foot of of his steed and looked up into his eyes. A single tear appeared and traced unabashedly down her cheek.

"I'm proud to meet you Jendrak. I am Aliah."

She looked around again at the grim scene before her. She was deeply touched by his offer to help her bury her dead. Such a task would have appeared immensely distasteful for any people not required to bear such a responsibility. 'Why had he made so generous an offer?' Truly this Jendrak was an enigma.

"Thank you," she continued bowing gratefully. "I can only accept that which you so valiantly offer. Your help is appreciated more than you can know. The time saved alone will give me that much more to track down the monsters that perpetrated this hideous act."

She removed the leather glove from her right hand and extended her arm upwards in greeting. As his hand approached hers she momentarily speculated on what she'd feel as they touched; not so much the feel of his grip but the flood of emotionality that she knew would flow from him to her.

Upon that first contact, she was neither disappointed nor surprised. She experienced a burst of insight into the essence of the Aawulat that she'd certainly never anticipated (having never considered that she'd actually meet one). He conveyed a remarkable sense of centered-ness, of mastery, of being one of a great heritage.

Coarse, primitive, atavistic, yes. But also a warmth and a sense of belonging to a great tradition. She shuddered at this realization and begin to think that this man, this utter stranger, did indeed share in her a deep revulsion for what the Jun had done.

Now, to attend to the remaining need of her kinfolk. Together they would bury her dead.

 

[AngelofDeath]

"Aliah, a very lovely name," Jendrak said as he took her hand in his. She wore gloves when she fought which meant her hands didn't bear the hardness that came with handling a sword, barehanded. He could tell she was surprised by his offer of help, he wasn't surprised by her reaction though. Because the Aawule were so well known for their love of battle and fighting skills it was simply assumed they had no true respect for life. Far from it in fact, the Aawule had a great respect for life, because they knew better than anyone how easy it was to snuff out that life.

There were as many healers and farmers in their tribe as there were hunters and warriors. Yes they lived very basic and simplistic lives in some respects, but it was because they felt life without all the trappings and dressing was the best expression of life itself.

Today Jendrak, rather than take a life helped Aliah mourn the lost lives of those she had known. It was long hard and dirty work, but by the end of the afternoon as the sun began to set the last grave was covered. The Jun had left no survivors, save for those they had possibly taken and what they hadn't destroyed the fire had consumed.

Dusting his hands off slowly Jendrak surveyed what was left. There was nothing left to salvage and so he turned and looked towards Aliah. "What will you do now?" He already had a suspicion she may try to catch up to the Jun Horde to save any they may have taken. The only problem with her plan was that she was only one person and time and ground would be lost if she went seeking help from others.

Once again Jendrak felt the urge to offer his hands to her, or in this case his sword. What was it about this pale woman than called to him? These weren't his people. This wasn't his fight, but that didn't matter. Just as the Aawule didn't turn away help from those not of their clan, do would he not hesitate to help her if she asked it of him. Even if she didn't ask, he would go. It was foolhardy to even go after the southern group, with just the two of them. There was no way to know until they were nearly on them, just how many they would face and there was no guarantee they would catch up to them or even find the taken women and girls alive.

Even if she wanted to follow, it would have to wait til the next day. Night would be upon them soon. Aliah was staring off in the distance and for a moment he thought she hadn't heard him until he saw the familiar shake of her shoulder. He'd seen it enough in the eyes of women of all ages when he brought back the body of a fallen relative or a brother in arms. Walking over he laid his hand upon one of her leather clad shoulders. "Aliah, let it out. Keeping grief bottled up will only lead to it eating you from the inside out. Even the Aawule shed tears for the dead."

 

[SweetPeril]

It had taken all day but finally the last body had been carefully and lovingly interred into the earth. They'd worked quickly but with great purpose. Just as dusk approached, they'd earned the right to some much needed rest.

The two strangers to one another had worked quietly and without let-up barely pausing to drink certainly not to eat. Aliah had set the pace with a sense of urgency knowing that the sooner they were finished, the earlier she'd be able to set out after the Jun.

She wiped the sweat from her brow. Until now, she'd barely noticed her exhaustion. Having completed her task, she was at last able to again contemplate the enormity of what had transpired in the village of her youth. She knelt down in anguish and pounded the ground with clenched fist. 'Why', she asked rhetorically knowing full well the answer. The Jun had done this for no other reason but that they could. Savages such as these required no further motivation. Aliah's village was a poor one. Her countrymen had nothing of great value worth plundering. At the hands of people such as the Jun, this was of no consequence.

Her sorrow overwhelming, she felt her body shaking, wracked with sobbing as her sadness suffused with anger at last took hold. Then, she felt a powerful but gentle hand rest reassuringly upon her shoulder. Again, as an empath, she sensed this strange man's goodness exude forth.

Primitive yes. Savage yes. Atavistic yes. Despite this, Jendrak clearly possessed a brilliant humanity steeped in an honorable tradition but tempered with a history of violence and war. In his touch, she sensed the pride of his people and his culture. There was no shame in unburdening her emotions in the presence of one such as he. Aliah felt stripped naked of all outward trappings and yet singularly without vulnerability.

A voice inside her asked, 'What is this strange feeling of openness that I'm sharing with this mysterious man?' She found herself able to bear her feelings to him.

"Aliah let it out." There was no irony in his voice. Neither was there pity. She knew that he was relating to her as a fellow sojourner, a one of battle, an equal. How wondrously liberating to be able to respond to such a creature without fear of showing weakness: weakness as a warrioress; weakness as a woman.

At last she rose to her feet. She turned to face him feeling no shame, no sense of inadequacy despite his great size as she stretched back her neck to look up to his eyes. "Thank you Jendrak. You have done me a great boon for which I can never repay you. No member of any alien culture has treated me with the respect and honor with which you have shown me.

"The darkness is approaching. We need rest, I so that I may commence my people's dangerous revenge upon the Jun and you for the long journey that I know you have to reach your own homeland. I cannot ask you to accompany me on that quest. In truth, there is folly to my goal and yet even if the Jun take my life, I must make every effort to attempt a rescue of my brothers and sisters that are in their capture. Who can say what horrors they've already been subjected to?

"Come, there is a beautiful brook near here. I shall take you there. We can rest and bathe the sweat of our labors away. Tomorrow we shall depart for our respective destinies Jendrak."

With that, she took the reins of her mount and led them away from this village of pain. She knew as they walked together that never again would she visit this land. After less than an hour with night upon them, they came across the secluded brook.

Under the clear sky with its brilliant blue-green moonlight, the site was as beautiful as she'd remembered from her childhood...

 

[SweetPeril]

.....

 

[SweetPeril]

.....

 

[AngelofDeath]

Jendrak simply nodded his head and turned to give a low whistle. Out of the brush came a dusky gray mare who fell into step next to him as they walked. As he expected Aliah had every intention of going off after the group headed south. She had already absolved him of having to come with her, but he had no intention of letting her go by herself. It wasn't that he didn't think her capable, far from it. He came from a culture where women wielded steel as good as if not better than the men they fought beside and against. No there was just something about her and the fact was if she wished to stand a chance at saving those taken, she would need his help.

Coming upon the brook he looked around. It was secluded, peaceful and beautiful as well. A far cry from where they had just been. The water would provide some much needed relief to their bodies if not their spirits. Rolling his shoulders he pulled the simple saddle from the mare's back along with the one light set of saddle bags he always carried with him and removed the bridle. Giving the horse a gentle pat on the neck, she walked off to find a place to settle down for the night.

Turning back to Aliah, Jendrak watched her slowly. "I know you said I do not have to accompany you, but I will do it anyways. I needed a to get away from my village for awhile and they are not expecting me back anytime soon. I wouldn't suit me to let you go by yourself, simply because no one should throw themselves headfirst into the mouth of death. Just as my hands were yours today my sword is yours." The tone of his voice made it clear he wasn't going to give her much choice in the matter.

Setting his things down beside a tree, Jendrak inclined his head to the left, "I'll be over hear to give you some privacy while you wash up." Had they met under different circumstances, Jendrak might have considered seducing her or even sticking close by to see what was hidden beneath her leathers. Now was not the time for that though. Aliah needed to clean up and to clear her head and he intended to respect that. Smirking he headed off on the other side of a tall growth of bushed along the treeline. There would be time for that much much later.

It hadn't been bad luck that had set their paths to crossing and Jendralk fully intended to see just how far those paths were meant to overlap. Once he found a good spot he dropped his sword belt and then removed his pants and boots. Dressing simply had its advantages, that much was true, but as he stepped into the cool water up to his waist Jendrak, began to muse on just how many layers he would have to go through before he got to see more of Aliah's pale smooth flesh. None of the Aawule were that pale save for the occasional child that was born and destined to be one of their mystics. And none had been born for several generations in his and many of the other tribes. Some had taken it as a sign that their days were numbered and the gods had forsaken them. Other believed that the time was just not right.

Because the night was so quite his sharp ears picked up on the sound of clothes hitting the earth and of Aliah stepping into the water. Even the coolness of the water could not stop his cock from growing firm at the though. Shaking his head and letting out a bark of laughter Jendrak set about getting clean and putting his thoughts as far away from his naked companion as much as possible. Aliah seemed to gentle of a woman to even consider laying with him, even if her eyes had rolled over him as all women's tended to when they saw him.

His were a passionate people, even in bed and Jendrak was no exception to that rule. Even at their most tender they usually proved too much for those who were not Aawule, which was why there were very few of them who were not Aawule by birth. Those that were were normally men who saw the raw natural beauty in female warriors. Outside women who had taken Aawule into their beds were simply trying to satisfy their own curiosity, to see if what they had heard was true. For some one time was enough and some returned now and again simply for the distraction, but very few settled down with their Aawule men. If they fell pregnant they sent their children to be raised by their fathers and their father's people.

When he was done, Jendrak got dressed, though his cock had yet to settle down. Setting close to the bushes, but still providing Aliah with her privacy he called out, "Are you clothed, Aliah?"

 

[SweetPeril]

The two had crossed through the valley to the brock of which Aliah referred. The night was surprisingly warm, the ground illuminated by the light of countless stars and the waxing moon. The air raised a great tranquility in them both, a welcome respite from the trials of the day.

Aliah felt strangely reassured by Jendrak's presense. This puzzled her. Always the loner, she'd seldom wished for a traveling companion. She only recalled distant travels with others when occupied in a military campaign. And yet here, Jendrak's presence yielded only a pleasing calm.

Her senses superbly attuned to him, she understood in the most concrete terms imaginable that Jendrak would refuse to leave her. His state of outrage and responsibility, his culture of ethics in battle would never permit him to do so. It was clear to her that such would imply nothing less than abandonment in his eyes.

So be it. His companionship and his legendary skills in the art of death would be an immense help to her. The odds of destroying those that committed this carnage and possibly saving other lives rose palpably with his help. The two would surely speak of this later.

For now, such words were a superfluity and both recognized it.

At last they arrived and both welcomed the beauty, even the magic of the brook and its environs. The time had come for them to attend to their fatigue and to the sore muscles each had sustained with the back-breaking work. They quickly dismounted and watered the horses.

The two then gathered kindling and set about building a fire. They sat silently before it for some moments before Jendrak rose, gathering his soap and a coarse thatch of burlap for a towel. "I'll be over here to give you some privacy while you wash up," he said while walking away.

Aliah smiled inwardly but said nothing. 'Such false modesty he has!' she thought. 'But how endearing.' She knew full well that as a warrior, privacy between those of equivalent rank was a laughable fiction on the open trail. Soldiers of disparate genders transcended such irrelevancies and no special effort was expended to accommodate them. Of course professionalism was the standard for which every warrior, male or female was bound and of which was expected.

Truly, the sight of a nude female soldier had upon occasion inspired physical...evidence of its effect on males from time to time. However, this was expected and deemed of no consequence. Never could she recall of an instance whereby proper conduct had been breached. Of course in her travels, she'd only associated with a class of warrior for whom nothing less would be expected.

Clearly, Jendrak fell into that category.

'Whatever makes him comfortable,' she thought admiring his sense of chivalry nonetheless.

When he disappeared behind the brush, she herself rose and stripped off her leathers. Grabbing some basic toiletries, she made her way into the fresh, rejuvenating waters.

Her nudity felt good and self-affirming. She bathed in pleasure and with alacrity. The sounds of Jendrak, nearby but invisible captured her attention momentarily. She wondered at how he would look sans clothing. For an instant, she even allowed herself the indulgence of speculating on the nature of his male endowments. She giggled inwardly realizing that she was simply responding to the great stress under which she was suffering.

"Are you clothed, Aliah?"

His disembodied words from across the bushes jarred her. She slowly emerged from the brook gathering her thoughts. She stood nakedly by the bank running her hands imperiously through her black, soaked locks. "What difference does it make Jendrak?" she asked with an air of muted disinterest...

 

[AngelofDeath]

"What difference does it make Jendrak?" Her question said it all, though it did make him laugh softly. Did it make a difference? Only the difference from being half aroused and fully aroused. He was a skilled and trained warrior but he was still a man. Shrugging to himself he headed back into their camp, though he didn't stop himself from looking her way. An action he began to second think as the already tight leather pants grew even tighter.

"It makes no difference I suppose. I just wanted to give you some privacy." Replacing the wrong out burlap and the soap back to his saddle bags, he made his way over to the fire, placing some more wood up it. Jendrak's hair was still wet and his movements sent water running down over his back and chest. "If we are lucky with prisoners in tow the Jun will be easy to catch up with. Tracking them would be easier if I had one or two of my dog's with me. This just means we do things differently from here forward."

Out of the corner of his yes he watched Aliah take her time, drying off and getting dressed. "And why does a woman like you have need for leathers? You should be a healer with hands as such as yours and yet here you are." Looking at her he titled his head, trying to figure out the puzzle that was the woman before him. "I suppose I should not make assumptions about you, but you are no ordinary woman Aliah. I know you belonged to the village and mourned them all, but not in the way one would family. If you do have any kin left in this world, then I am sure they would want to see you return from all this alive and whole. That is part of why I am coming with you."

There was much he did not know about her, but there was plenty of time for him to find it out. Turning back to the fire he stared at the flickering flames. The Jun would be heading back to their own home or heading further south to catch up to any of the groups of traveling slave traders. They would sell the children and any men they had taken and would probably keep the women for themselves unless they were offered enough for the entire group. The jun were everything the Aawule strove not to be, though they had been compared to them and spit upon as if they were no better than the Jun themselves.

Letting his thoughts return to the Jun, proved to be all the motivation his body needed to relax fully, though it only helped so much since as one lover put it even at rest his cock was a work of art from the gods.

 

[SweetPeril]

"I suppose I should not make assumptions about you, but you are no ordinary woman Aliah. I know you belonged to the village and mourned them all, but not in the way one would family. If you do have any kin left in this world, then I am sure they would want to see you return from all this alive and whole. That is part of why I am coming with you."

'There it was,' Aliah thought. It was Jendrak's final declaration. His assertion that he'd never leave her until he saw her through the monumentally hazardous task ahead of her...ahead of them. She turned to him considering the gravity of his words. At that instant, she knew beyond any words ever uttered by mortals that he'd be at her side either in triumph or in death.

She walked nakedly forward, noting Jendrak's eyes as they darted mischievously to her large breasts which bobbed gently with each step. She approached the now blazing fire and stood beside him, gazing into its wonder. She placed a hand gently upon his equally naked shoulder marveling at the sinewy muscles rippling even beyond his control. "Thank you. I'll never forget this. You know as well as I that quite likely neither of us shall survive the coming ordeal. And yet still, you offer the essence of your power to me."

With that, she dressed in her now cleaned leathers. No further words passed between them, each contemplating the destiny they now shared. "Sleep my friend," she said raising her sword. "I shall take the first watch."

Jendrak looked up to her knowing instinctively that to argue with her regarding this point was folly. Accepting her words, he layed out his bedding and stretched his massive form upon the ground grateful for some few hours of blessed relief from the day's toil. Like any warrior skilled at gathering sleep whence possible, he closed his eyes and quickly fell into the arms of the night gods.

For some minutes, Aliah watched as the flickering of the fire played upon the bronzed flesh of her supine companion. She marveled at how easily he'd fallen asleep, how like the warrior he was to be capable of doing so despite the manifold unknowns that awaited. She stepped to the periphery of their quickly improvised camp and began circling it. Her senses as always in such circumstances had ramped to an exquisite pitch. Not the slightest rustling of a leaf escaped her notice.

She closed her eyes, tipped her chin up to the sky, and raised her arms high. In silent prayer she beckoned the gods of war most terrible: 'Please oh gods, support me on this terrible quest. Give me the strength to travel forth and find my lost brothers and sisters. Let me not be too late in offering myself as their savior. Let not a hair on their heads be damaged. Let not a minute fraction of their virtue be breached by these sinister demons. And let me lay waste...to all who participated in the this hideous atrocity. Let these senses honed by my masters not fail me now oh gods!'

She opened her eyes and looked up at the stars. Gradually, her gifts of skills supernatural filled her awareness. In her mind's eye, she could now clearly see the Jun, their prisoners in tow as they marched on in the night over the rough, rock-strewn land to the north. She winced as she felt the pain of the sharp ground cut into her brethren's bare feet as they were pushed relentlessly along. Yes her powers would not fail her. The information Jendrak had recited to her during the day provided the hook, the connection her mind required to latch on to the Jun, to track them. They'd not now be able to escape her.

At once, their exact location, their route was laid out in her mind. She knew where they had been and more importantly knew...knew where they were headed. They'd not be able to escape her mysterious divine knowledge. Her arcane skill had served both her and her battalion in the past as they hunted one enemy after another. It would not fail her now.

After several hours, Jendrak aroused and rose to his feet. Instinctively, his innate clock had awakened him. She turned to him knowing it was now her turn to gather what few hours of rest remained before morn's arrival.

Silently, she walked to her own bedding and nodding gravely to Jendrak, she lay down. She looked up and saw his placid, reassuring visage as she took one last glance at him standing over her. Utterly secure in the knowledge that her physical safety could never be in more reliable care, she closed her eyes and fell into blessed sleep...

 

[AngelofDeath]

Jendrak took his turn at watch while Aliah slept. The look on her face when she had bedded down had been one of grim determination. She fully expected they wouldn't survive the encounter with the Jun. It was possible, he would admit that much, but Jendrak was not ready to say goodbye to this life and along their journey if they could gather help from any other Aawule that they may meet, things could improve in their favor greatly.

He had actually watched her sleep for several moments before he walked the circle of the camp, lost in thought. if they had the time to spare Jendrak would have suggested enlisting the aid of several of his fellow Aawule. There would have been more than a few up for the challenge of tracking down the Jun. They were like locus, too numerous to fully exterminate and nearly as predictable as the snow. The Jun were nomads at worst, constantly on the move from place to place, bringing death and pain in their wake. At best they stuck to the south and their settlements.

At first he had told himself he was simply going along to make sure her kin were released an that she wasn't wasting her life on a futile effort. In short time though he knew that it was more than that. No woman before her had fascinated Jendrak as much as Aliah did and he couldn't bring himself to end their time together so shortly.

No even if he had turned and left for home, Jendrak would have gone back long enough to tell any warriors willing to come along to follow his trail before turning his mare and pushing her as hard as possible to catch up with Aliah. He was just cutting out that particular step.

Shortly before the rose, Jendrak caught two rabbits for their breakfast. Just as the sun was coming up they were set over the fire to cook while he cleaned his knife. It was a good thing Jendrak always traveled with a well packed saddle bag. with no wife and no children he was free to come and go from his village as he pleased. Doing so meant being prepared to eat while on the trail, so he always carried his knife with him, to clean whatever he had caught.

Sitting by the fire, turning their breakfast Jendrak looked Aliah's way as she continued to sleep. From the looks of how much dust had covered her armor he knew she had ridden for a while to reach the burnt out village. She'd probably complain for him letting her sleep, but it was no doubt, sleep that was very much needed. They had plenty of a way to go before they reached the Jun. Sleep and a full stomachs came first.

Then they would go on the hunt. The Jun were animals, and would die as such.

Once the rabbits were just about done, Jendrak walked around the fire to rouse Aliah. "Aliah, it's morning." He bent down to shake her shoulder gently. along the way though he reached up to brushed the hair from her sleeping face. She looked much more innocent and fragile that the angry and battle ready woman he'd met yesterday. "And if you keep sleep I won't feel bad about eating your breakfast."

Aliah turned, rolling onto her back as she rubbed her eyes before staring up at him as he rose back up to his feet.He watched her sit up and stretch as he went to pull their breakfast from the flame before it burnt. Charred fish was one thing, charred rabbit tended to sit in the stomach like a stone weight. As he did Jendrak noted the clouds crossing the sky, "We'll have to move soon, smells like rain and we won't want to lose their tracks."

The morning was cool, a slight dampness to it. Rain was very much a possibility. It would be just his luck to get caught in a storm, dressed as he was, but his mother had, as always stuffed a cloak into his saddle bags. He may have been a hardened warrior of many years, but his mother saw nothing but the tiny boy she'd brought into the world.

 

[SweetPeril]

Aliah quickly awakened, nudged by Jendrak's gentle ministrations. As she turned and opened her eyes, his concerned face filled her vision. She looked up and smiled then turned her head towards the mountains. The horizon was glowing with vibrant morning light. A heavy cloud bank could be seen silhouetted against the against the soft orange glow of morn.

She sat up and stretched, the pungent smell of Jendrak's rabbit reaching her senses. She was famished and the savory odor permeated her psyche. She was immediately grateful for his efforts while she'd been sleeping. Aliah allowed him to serve her and she devoured the meal with alacrity as they exchanged few words. It somehow seemed appropriate, each lost in their own thoughts.

At last, she rose to her feet. "Let's get ready my friend. The Jun have not made as much progress in putting distance between themselves and their deeds as they'd hoped. Their prisoners have slowed them more than they anticipated. I can sense their frustration. I can also sense in their collective emotionality something new." Aliah looked off to the north, seeing and feeling something are partner could not.

She then turned back to face him. "Jendrak. Unlike yesterday, the Jun are now accompanied by a fear, a foreboding." She continued gravely. "They are afraid. They feel an uncomfortable urgency. Nothing concrete but they now understand that they are prey.

"I've been told that they have rudimentary empath capabilities. I now know that to be the case." She smiled at Jendrak who looked at her with mild puzzlement. "Don't be so puzzled my friend. A faint glimmer of my quest to destroy them has passed to them through the ether. Their empathic nature has taught them concern. But now, today...it is your presence that has engendered fear." She giggled lightly. "Congratulations. Knowledge of the fearsome nature of the Aawulat has proceeded you!"

Aliah began to gather her things. She then thrust her horse's mount upon her back hefted her pack and climbed up. "Come. To the hunt." She spun her ride expertly around waiting as Jendrak himself mounted his own mare. She marveled at his massive chiseled form as it stood against the backdrop of trees and mountains.

She'd always managed to keep sexual thoughts at bay finding them a distraction. As she looked at Jendrak, it occurred to her that perhaps her success in this end had merely been because she'd never before encountered such a specimen of manflesh.

Such feelings were as uncomfortable as they were unfamiliar. Clearly it was more than his physical gifts. There was an animus about him, a spirit that she'd never known before. From their first meeting, she'd sensed that he'd confronted his mortality on many occasion. In each case, he had triumphed. Indeed, in untold instances, he'd introduced the enemy to his or hers. Yet unlike many warriors she'd known, Jendrak was utterly devoid of a death wish. He wished not merely to help her vanquish the Jun but also to prevail. It was clear to her that he fully intended to be victorious.

This endeared him to her in ways that he would never know. Yes, his physical form was nothing less than awesome, but it was this unabashed reverence for life; for her life, for his life that so captivated her. He caused in her a longing that she'd never known, one that encompassed her mind but also her body. Strange and distant feelings she thought as they rode off to face the day. As they galloped away, a realization came to mind.

Was it possible? Had these feelings made themselves known, even to that most sacred prize of her feminine essence...her cunt?

 

[AngelofDeath]

The more he learned about Aliah and the more she spoke Jendrak realized it was no mere chance that they had met. Dousing the fire with dirt and gathering his things, he whistled for his horse. The mare came trotting up, ever obediently and pawed at the ground almost impatiently while he saddled her. She was as eager to leave as they were.

Once he was ready and mounted the pair of them took off at a quick gallop. Aliah had thought he was puzzled, far from it. He was surprised, gratefully surprised at that. With her gifts tracking the Jun would be much easier. Before they had left, Jendrak had left sign for any that may come looking for him that they were headed north and had left the emblem of the Jun behind as well. If anyone came they would know Jendrak would appreciate their aid.

He didn't doubt that the Jun feared him and every other Aawule, but the sight of one would ease some of their fear and lead them into bold and reckless battle against him.

As they rode Jendrak's mind raced. Before he had simply wanted to spend his passion with her. Now he wanted more than one possible encounter with her. Several minutes into their ride, he moved up alongside of her.

"Aliah, it wasn't puzzlement. it was surprise. Women and even men like you are born to the Aawule on rare occasions. They are the mystics of our people and held in high regard. The only one I have ever met was an old crone, well past her years, but with many more still in her. They are few in number among us these days and even fewer have been born."

He shook his head, "Some says its because the Gods have abandoned us to our own fate without their intervention or blessings, that because we have isolated ourselves from other cultures we are now to be left to survive or die out by the strength of our hands, our swords and our hearts."

In his mind Jendrak, could imagine the reception she would receive amongst his kin. Every available man and a few women would fall over themselves to try and catch her eye. Considering how she kept looking his way when she thought he would not notice, Jendrak was sure she had caught his. That was for a later time though.

As they rode, the day grew brighter despite the cloud coverage. Aliah had been right and picking up the Jun's trail was almost took easy. They had taken took many prisoners and had to slow their pace because of it. Every so often they would find a large cluster of hooves and scattered prints. One or more had tried to fight back. "Your people may be captured, but they are putting up a fight and making it hard for the Jun to push them as hard as they wish."

As much as he was pleased by that, Jendrak knew the Jun would eventually loose their paitence with the trouble makers and would kill one or more to make the others fall back into line. They already had a high price on their heads for what they had done and would die for it regardless, but killing those who had been taken would only solidify the fact they would be given no quarter and would be cut down like the beasts they were.

 

[SweetPeril]

They rode for days, stopping at times to track their prey. Periodically, Aliah would sense a subtle shift in the Jun's direction and pace. Such visions occurred at seemingly random intervals, occasionally happening during their too brief periods of sleep.

Aliah's sleep was also accompanied by dreams, dreams of a harmless, nondescript people pillaged ruthlessly by a cruel vicious mob. Sometimes she would awaken in a cold chill bolting upright in her bedding. Such jolts from sleep unfailingly brought Jendrak to her side offering words of encouragement and reassurance and occasionally a discrete hug.

During the day, they galloped furiously, continuously gaining on the Jun. After some time, it became clear that they'd finally catch up with them in one or two more nightfalls. That evening, the two warriors rested, stealing themselves for the inevitable confrontation certain to take place the next day.

The exhausting chase had, despite it's rigor, innervated them. They each found their senses driven to a fevered pitch. They each noticed in the other a superb refinement of their mission. As they rode, they began to know of their separate capabilities. They begin to mesh as a team, her thoughts becoming his; his thoughts becoming hers.

Each day brought new affection and respect towards each other. Jendrak developed an wondrous appreciation for Aliah's riding skills. Never had he seen a woman ride taller and with greater assurance in her mount. It was as if she were born to it, her horse being an intricate extension of her body. Likewise, he'd found her tracking abilities to be without peer. Certainly, her psychic skills were brought to bear but there was something more. She had a gift for reading the signs on the ground that he'd never seen.

There was no doubt in his mind that were she one of the Aawulat, she'd have certainly risen to the highest ranks of command. And yet Aliah was clearly a reluctant warrior. As he'd come to know, she was a skilled physician, her life's desire one of healing...not killing. She'd made a conscious effort to walk away from that life yet here she was, embarked on what no doubt would be a murderous revenge.

For better or for worse, that was the way of this world. For reasons that could only be known by the philosophers, writers of history, and the priests; lawlessness reigned. Who could point to that time in this world in which courts and the rule of law had ended? Certainly not Aliah and certainly not the Aawulat, a people for whom the rest of that world had set aside, had marginalized, and had ultimately come to live in abject fear of.

The world had de-evolved, the age of enlightenment had dimmed. It was as if goodness itself had forsakened its people and had come to live only in the hearts of a select few.

Aliah and Jendrak had not spoken of such things preferring instead to focus on the task at hand. However, with each passing day, Aliah became more impressed with his humanity. She also became increasingly aware of his growing affection and respect for her.

Though a virgin and not experienced in the ways of love, she'd been initially aware of his sexual attraction towards her but as the days wore on, she sensed in him a change. Surely, he still viewed her in sexual terms, but she also knew that the arousal she engendered in him was something more. As is well known, the skills of the empath are attenuated in matters of the heart but for whatever reason, she knew that his respect for her as a person, as a woman was now unquestioned. Aliah knew that in his eyes, she represented so much more than the mere hope of sexual conquest.

For the first time in her life, she speculated on such things. Could he be her first? Could being the object of his conquest be such a bad thing? Could she part her thighs and allow his powerful essence to penetrate hers? Could she surrender her proud body to him?

The very thought made her shudder and colored the way she looked at him. As they dismounted for this final night before battle, she thought of this. It was by this time undeniable, the sexual tension between them had become palpable indeed!

Could she permit the primitive carnal forces between them, forces that grew moment by moment to be unleashed? Resolutely, she began to realize that yes, it was possible and after the destruction of their quarry...even probable.

For now, thoughts of Jun blood gushing in torrents came to mind stirring a lust no less gratifying than the thought of Jendrak's manhood. Tomorrow may be her last day on this planet. That she could live with, so long as many more of the Jun were also severed from their life force.

These were her thoughts as she now sat next to her comrade before the glowing fire they'd prepared before bedding down on this final night. She looked to the small vial she held in her hand and contemplated its contents.

It was a rare, pungent oil much valued by her people. Tomorrow, she would bathe. Then, with this oil, she would anoint her body for war. To do so was a custom rarely performed and only before what was perceived to be a day of the most feverish, horrific battle. Tomorrow would no doubt be such a day. She looked to Jendrak seated beside her as he gazed into the flames, lost in his own thoughts. She wondered if he too, would engage in this strange ritual with this strange oil.

Surely, the Aawulat were above such things...

 

[AngelofDeath]

As the days passed Jendrak found himself thinking of something his father's mother had said to him once when he had come of age and the women had began to notice him. 'Aawule women fall in love with their heads. Aawule men fall in love with their eyes.' For the most part it was true, their women sought the best possible lover they could and looked for more than just an appealing face or a skilled touch. Most Aawule men simply looked for a woman who was a good fighter or was very lovely no matter what she did.

Was he in love with Aliah? No, but he was interested in more than just one moment of heated passion with her. Without having seen her in battle yet Jendrak could almost say she was the embodiment of his perfect woman. Smart, beautiful, fearless, what more could any warrior want by his side in the saddle or beneath him at night?

The closer they got to the Jun, the more determined the look on Aliah's became. And while they did pass the time here and there with conversation, for the most the had rode, bathed, ate and slept in relative silence.

Even now, merely a few hours to a day's ride behind the Jun and they sat in silence before the fire. Aliah looked as lost in thought as he was, though now and then she would look at the vial in her hand. Eve with the stopper in place, he could smell the oil within. Eventually the silence that was disturbed only by the sound of wood popping and of crickets, grew tiresome and Jendrak looked her way. "And what about that vial has you thinking so hard?"

Aliah had stripped her armor off and sitting as close as they were, Jendrak had had more than one opportunity to appreciate her body. Then again he had seen her naked already. That didn't stop him from looking though or contemplating peeling the layers from her.

Had he been amongst his fellow Aawule Jendrak would be lost in sleep, a naked woman or two pressed against him, or he would be very much up and awake, making a feminine voice scream for the gods. Before riding off to meet whatever fate the gods held for them, an Aawule warrior would spend his or her night with a lover or lovers of their choosing. It was their way of heading into battle with no regrets. Lovers who were both also warriors would spend the entire day, enjoying the life they had been given by the gods and the pleasure given to them by their partner.

Such a way to prepare for battle and possible death would seem distasteful to her or anyone else that didn't understand that the Aawule embraced all parts of life and that if they were to face death they would celebrate life first. If he had known her better Jendrak might have pointed out to her, that holding on to her virtue when she could slip from this world the next seemed wasteful. Though whether she would be up for the challenge of having him as her first was another matter.

Instead because he was also tired of seeing her lovely face so put out Jendrak plucked the vial from her hand before she could answer him and got to his feet. With a smirk in her direction he walked to the other side of the fire. "I wonder what we have here." He raise the vial to his nose, inhaling more the heavy scent. "Smells like a woman. A very happy woman at that. So just what did you plan to do with this?" He asked with a teasing tone to his voice.

If he could not spend this last night in her arms, Jendrak had every intention of, for the moment anyways, keeping them distracted from what tomorrow held. The gods and their fates could wait.

 

[SweetPeril]

A weary look came over Aliah brought on by her companion's flippant attitude toward her vial and what it represented to her. She'd hoped she could convey to Jendrak the deep spiritual significance it held. She rose to her feet and strode purposefully towards him. She extended her hand beckoning him to return the vial.

Looking up into her grave, serious countenance, he placidly handed it up to her. Aliah held it high. "This is Sera'hta," she said reverently. "Its origin is both secret and magical. It inflames the heart and gives strength and and inner heat to those who participate in the powerful ritual of its application. It is said to amplify the warrior spirit in those who believe. Enemies capable of breaking its practitioners without its benefit have been known to yield helplessly under its spell."

"It sounds preposterous Aliah. We've long ago extirpated the witches and sorcerers from our tribe."

She smiled down at him, a wooden expression on her face. "I can't make you believe Jendrak. Not if your heart and soul is closed to the possibilities in this vial."

At once, Jendrak looked down at his feet somewhat ashamed of himself for not taking her seriously. It occurred to him that never before had he encountered such a directed, single-minded woman as she. Wasn't she worthy of at least a temporary suspension of his incredulity given what he knew of her? This was no silly lass prone to adolescent thoughts. She was all woman and had clearly been struck by the gods with more than a dollop of brilliance. "Go on. Tell me more."

She continued, again looking into the vial's contents. "It is not so much this oil itself, although its nature is indeed special. Rather it is its application. After bathing, it is carefully applied to one's flesh. This is done by one's fellow warriors just before battle. It is the act that sanctifies the magic. Every pore is coated with its goodness and its heat. One can feel its effects within mere moments."

"It's applied by one's fellow warriors?"

"Yes," replied Aliah dismissively. "Typically it is a male ritual with males anointing each other. Females likewise will do the same."

"Men anointing each other?" he responded with obvious surprise.

"What's the matter Jendrak? Do you not think your delicate gender identity can suffer such an 'indignity'?"

He considered her challenge. "I suppose if the ritual yields the abilities you say it can..." He then raised the apropos question: "And when there's only the two of us, a male and a female?"

She looked at him in a serious, almost grim manner. "This is not worthy of your laughter Jendrak. Can you manage it with the requisite degree of propriety?" There was not the slightest hint of irony or insincerity in her voice.

"I suppose."

"Then come." She offered him her hand which he accepted. In a single surprisingly effortless movement, she pulled him briskly to his feet. Looking directly into this virtual giant's eyes, she led him away from the fire. They walked to the bank of the stream that flowed some twenty feet from their fire.

Aliah looked up to his eyes yet again as he towered over her. Maintaining eye contact, she slowly knelt down before him. 'Remarkable,' he marveled, 'that she can perform such a gesture without assuming even the slightest affect of subservience.'

Indeed though she was on her knees before him, she appeared to maintain a palpable air of control, of leadership. Her power awed Jendrak. She eased his feet out of the coarse boots that covered them. Then, again casting her eyes upward, she gently untied the belt of his pants. Slowly, delicately, she drew them down his massive thighs, to his ankles. She tugged them around his feet and guided him out of them.

He now stood boldly, magnificently, and utterly naked before her - immovable, yet not knowing quite what to expect. The cool evening air felt wondrous and even sensual against his bare flesh. His senses had never reached such a peak. Jendrak stood awaiting her next action.

She again took his hand and gestured him to follow. She directed him into the icy mountain stream as she stood on the bank. "Go. Bathe my friend. Purify your flesh in readiness for the oil."

Jendrak did as he was told. He stepped to the middle of the water and submerged his body completely. The cold chill felt good, affirming even. The grime of their travels dissolved quickly. He immerged from the water and Aliah directed him out of the water once again. She awaited him a coarse thatch of burlap in hand. "Dry your flesh in preparation Jendrak she said handing it to him.

He did so, instinctively knowing that he was to follow her instructions without deviation.

"Come." She took the burlap from him folding it carefully and placing it aside. Taking his hand in hers, she walked him back to the fire. She held up the vial. "Are you ready my friend?"

"Yes," was all he could say. With that, she poured some of the mystical Sera'hta onto her hands.

She slowly turned him around and faced his backside. The first touch was electric in its intensity. She rubbed the oil into his scalp, his neck. Stone-faced, she rubbed it over his massive shoulders, his powerful back, his arms. Without hesitation, her hands glided smoothly over his flawless buttocks, massaging the warm, aromatic oil in. Her touch was strong, self-assured, confident. She knelt down and applied it deep into his thighs, his legs, his ankles, even the souls of his feet.

At last, satisfied, she slowly turned him around again standing. She ran her hands gracefully over his face, his neck. Jendraks muscular chest quivered as she anointed him expertly. They looked into each other's eyes, not a word passing between them. Barely a breath seemed to exude from the two warriors.

Again, the same gesture as before - Aliah knelt before him maintaining every ounce of the balance of power between them. Her face mere inches from his phallus, she lowered her gaze to regard it. Certainly, she'd seen her share but never had she touched one. Though reluctant to admit it to herself, she viewed Jendrak's as nothing less than a miracle of the gods. In truth, she'd never imagined one could be this large or this thick...or this beautiful.

It didn't frighten her yet it fully captured her imagination. Here was a cock of substance, of gravity. This was power and grace, the epitome of manly grandeur. This was not Jendrak's essence in total yet surely it represented the primordial force of the ages.

As she looked at it, it slowly transformed as it became engorged with Jendrak's potent blood. She placed some more oil on her hands never allowing her gaze to stray from its magnificence. Gently, reverently, she touched it, wrapping its huge shaft carefully in her hand. In an instant, she found it turgid and hard as the most weathered rock. Jendrak's erection was nothing if not stunning. She caressed it carefully, with increasing confidence, anointing its entire shaft. She felt its heat and pulsations in her hands. She caressed the large, heavy stones that held his seed, great balls that would do credit to a great steed.

Completing her task at last, she arose yet again standing proudly before him. She surveyed his superb glistening body as it glinted off the flames of the fire.

With a clear voice, she asked: "Jendrak? Do you feel the power? Do you feel the gift of the Sera'hta?"

 

[AngelofDeath]

Jendrak felt something, but it had nothing to do with the gift of the Sera'hta. Aliah made him ache in a way no other woman had done before it and that spoke volumes to his blood. It had taken all his self control not to pull the clothes from her, when her hands found his cock. Her appraisal of him and it had not gone unnoticed, neither had the slight shake of her hands, though she remained focused on her task.

Finding his voice he closed the distance between them, his hand grabbing her free hand and dragging her against him. "I feel something something Aliah, but it has little has little to do with the spiritual." When she opened her mouth, his fingers pressed to her lips silencing her. "I feel the power of both our lives coursing through us. I feel the weight of what the next day brings. I feel a woman who is so ready to meet death, but who has not tasted all that life has to offer. I also feel the fire that you have set in my blood, little one."

He smiled watching the fire fill her eyes once more at his endearment. "It is not an insult and you know it Aliah." Leaning down as his hand slid up from her hand to curl into her hair, holding her, Jendrak kissed her cheek, "You have readied me for battle in your way, but now it is my turn and the Aawule way.'' His teeth found the flesh of her ear, biting softly.

"Jendrak, I..." He cut her off again, this time with his mouth instead of his fingers. His lips and tongue were insistent, until he felt her open for him. Taking a brief moment to taste the honey of her tongue, the warrior pulled her against him more, his full shaft pressing against her stomach. When he pulled back the fire showed how swollen her lips had become. "So sweet, so innocent. Tomorrow you will face the blades of our prey with no regrets. The Aawule face death, knowing the night before we held nothing back. That we lived our lives and shared that gift with another. Do you trust me?"

Jendrak watched as she pulled into herself, thinking on what he had to say, before she nodded, "I trust you."

Smiling he stepped back just enough, "Good." Reining his lust in, Jendrak slowly peeled away her clothing. He watched the blush color her skin as he removed the bindings over her breasts. "You should not hide who you are Aliah. you are a gift from the gods. What man could not want you? You are lush and full. As a woman should be." His hands came up to cup her breasts, thumbs stroking over her pale nipples as they began to swell. "So beautiful," There would be time for more later as he dropped his hands and kneeled before her, helping her the rest of the way out of her clothing and her boots.

Looking up at Aliah as his hands ran up and down her toned legs he said,"Put your hands on my shoulders and spread your legs." When she did, although nervously, Jendrak nodded. His fingers combed the the curls on her mound. Already he could smell the heat of her sex. "The Aawule celebrate life as best we can the night before. We take and give pleasure to the one we leave behind." He took his eyes off her only so he could watch his hands as they trailed lower. His slick fingers stroked and caressed over the lips of her sex, the calloused tip of her his index slipping between to draw the nectar of her body up to her pearl. He let out a groan when her nails dug into him as his finger stroked back and forth over the swelling nub of flesh.

"Do you know how beautiful you are Aliah? Not just in flesh, but in spirit. I only feel one gift at this moment. Not the Sera'hta, not even my own gods. You, only you my little one." He planted kisses on her thighs as his fingers continue to tease her, to coax the wetness out of her until Aliah was trembling in front of him. Once his fingers were wet Jendrak got back to his feet, making sure she could see him as he licked his fingers clean. Taking her by the hand he led her over to the grass and laid her down.

Laying next to her Jendrak started at her forehead and made his way down, kissing and tasting every inch of her. He let out a small chuckle into the flesh of her breast when she gasped at the feel of his tongue against her nipples. Holding her close, Jendrak feasted at her nipples like an infant. The moans coming from her, urge him on made the blood throb harder in his cock and for his balls to grow heavy.

Eyes dark with need h moved lower still, watching her face as one more he parted her legs and her sex. With much reverence he dropped his lips to the fount of her body and began to lick and nibble at her. She was as hot and sweet as he knew she would be. He took his pleasure watching her take his gift to her. The fingers of his left hand dipped into the growing collection of her wetness. When he sank one finger into her, he groaned, kissing her thigh again. "Sweet gods Aliah. So tight and wet, but not yet ready."

He drove his hips against her thigh, reminding her of his size. Rising up some he pushed her thighs up and open, spreading her open to him fully. Seeing the way she trembled he whispered against her skin. "Only pleasure tonight little one."

Jendrak took his time, working his finger in and out of her, skillfully coxing her body to relax for him. He slowed when Aliah tensed as the second entered her. She was tighter than any virgin he had ever lain with and Jendrak was determined to make sure she was ready for him. He sucked her pearl into his mouth as his fingers pumped in and out of her, making the way for his cock to follow. Already she was nearing her first peak, just as he wanted. Nibbling at the flesh in his mouth Jendrak pushed through her maidenhead just as her body began to pull him deep with her clenching.

He didn't give her a chance to focus on the pain as his fingertips curled against the swollen mound inside of her. Her moans and whines were music to his ears as he drank her down. When her climax began to slow the warrior pulled his fingers from her body and sat up. Looking into her eyes, he knew she expect him to take her then and there. Instead Jendrak pulled her into his arms and astride him.

"Jendrak what are you doing?" Aliah breath against him as his hands found her hips.

"Your first time should not be flat on your back on the ground Aliah. It will be easier for you this way. This way you can control how we move." Lifting her with ease Jendrak positioned himself under her and then began to lower her onto his cock. His mouth sought out her nipple as the wet heat of her body enveloped him. Jendrak wanted to just thrust up into her, taking her all at once, but he had promised Aliah nothing but pleasure and he lived by his word. Sucking her nipple deep into his mouth he groaned as she took all of him, slowly but surely.

Gods above she was tight enough to have him ready to spill himself into her. When she was seated on him fully Jendrak's hands showed her how to mover herself on him.

"Ride me Aliah. Take this gift from me. Tonight our lives are ours and ours alone. Tomorrow we face our fates, whatever they may be."

 

[SweetPeril]

Aliah had been taken aback with Jendrak's actions. Always in life, she had cherished the control; the exquisite sense of mastery of her environment, of her surroundings, her actions, even her very emotions. In the precious moments of this evening, such control was little more than a fiction, a mythical construct with little bearing on reality.

Tonight was the night in which she relinquished her mind and her body to another.

She'd always imagined that such a time would be one of great difficulty, of great psychic torment. Such was not the case. Rather, Aliah's surrender was met with an air of gratefulness, of release. Never could she have imagined the freeing of her mind and body to have been accompanied with such peace, even bliss.

And yet here she was. Momentarily, she recalled the last time a man had attempted to bare her body, to expose her physical form against her will. It was a robber, an enormous, muscular thug she'd encountered during a hike through an unfamiliar place. Initially, he'd wanted the gold she was carrying but as he'd drawn close, her unparalleled beauty appreciated, the man's ardor became clear. To prevent violence, as was Aliah's way, she was fully prepared to part with at least some of her coin.

When he'd made known his intention to violate her person, her anger came to the fore. Always the pacifist, she'd not fought back despite his having raised a knife to her throat. In full control of the situation, she'd been determined not to shed his blood for he obviously knew not whom he was dealing with.

When he reached up taking her full, proud breast in hand however, his fate was cast.

Looking down in fascination at his hand, her arms remaining at her side, she had uttered a simple and direct command: "Remove it." His last final opportunity for survival lay in his willingness to obey what was clearly not meant as a suggestion. He failed to do so instead sneering insolently at her.

"I hope the feel of my tit's fullness has given you pleasure," she responded. These were the last words he heard before her hand, in a blinding motion moved instantly to his throat striking a mortal blow that left his windpipe shattered even before his vanquished body fell heavily to the ground. He gasped, grabbing his neck helplessly as his mouth and his lungs filled immediately with blood. His eyes widened with terror as he looked up at her standing over him, a massive dominant figure now presiding over his agonizing death.

She remembered the utter surprise on his face before he choked to death, emitting helpless gurgling sounds as his soul eventually fell from his body descending into the netherworld. This had been the fate of the last man attempting to breach the sanctity of her body.

How different this delicious experience of the night was she thought! For the first time in her life, she felt the warmth, the pleasure, the ecstasy, of surrendering her very spirit and physical form to another. As Jendrak stripped her of her body's coverings, she felt an overwhelming passion that possessed every fiber of her being as her clothing fell. Comfortable with her body, she'd never before felt naked before another and yet now, at this moment, she felt naked and exposed...indeed gloriously so.

She felt his passion as he kissed her mouth; felt his massive, male organ as it pressed without shame against her belly. Her mind was ablaze with new and welcomed feelings as he knelt before her stripping her of her loin coverings, exposing the jewel of her sex. She felt her secretions flowing, felt the heat of his face as it approached, and felt the wondrous pleasure he generated as his expert tongue explored every mysterious corner of her now swollen vulva.

Jendrak brought her to one rising peak of pleasure after another in rapid succession. She'd never realized just how orgasmic she truly was. Her eyes closed as she reveled in the remarkable skills at pleasuring a woman that her lover possessed. When at last he positioned her now aching body upon him, it occurred to her that never before had a woman experienced such unabandoned emotionality and ecstasy as she had been gifted with at this moment.

She felt the pain as his manly tool pierced her sex relentlessly, remorselessly, unapologetically. It was as though his great phallus was an animus, a disembodied spirit separate from Jendrak as it savagely entered her. She bounced upon him urging it in, relishing the pleasure it gave...and the pleasure she knew she was giving it.

Never had she felt so vulnerable nor so powerful as she lurched like an animal on top of him, taking in every drop of life that he had to offer. Yes, there was pain as his thick, turgid penis plunged into her, but there was also the purest, most intense heat she'd ever imagined.

At last, she came, and came again, over and over. How many times? She couldn't know, each thunderous climax greater than the one before. Finally, she felt his virile seed pour passionately into her being as his proud body wracked with its own pleasure. She felt him jerk uncontrollably between her powerful thighs. She felt her own large, round breasts bounce wildly with his movements, her erect teats throbbing. When at last the two lovers, each panting breathlessly, had completed their orgasms, she collapsed into him, her nipple finding its way gratefully into his mouth as he suckled hungrily.

Their energies marvelously dissipated, they fell into each other's arms hugging, kissing, each other, each loving the very being of their partner. Each of them knew that this heated exchange was no fleeting moment. Each had found their special one.

Jendrak fell at once to sleep, utterly spent. Aliah marveled at his naked beauty, at the love he'd shown her. She was captivated by his easy breathing, by the look of bliss and peace on his face as he slept. She slowly arose looking about. She spied a mound by the bank of the stream.

Reaching for her sword, she picked it up and climbed it standing before her lover, her partner, before the stream, the distant mountains, and the final journey she knew was to come tomorrow. She lifted the sword to the sky beseeching the gods.

"Give me strength ye gods of the darkness. Allow me to free my countrymen. Allow me to vanquish the dreaded enemy and lay their worthless bodies to decay in the heat of tomorrow's sun. She turned and gazed upon Jendrak's glorious nakedness as he slept.

And give me the strength to protect and provide succor for he who is my partner in battle...and my lover.

 

[AngelofDeath]

Jendrak slept peacefully and unmoving save for his chest rising and falling with each breath while Aliah was away from his side. The moment she laid down beside him though, his arms snaked out and around her, pulling her firmly against him, his lips dragging over her neck before he settled back down into sleep dragging her with him.

The pair slept until a few hours before dawn when Jendrak rose and carried Aliah to the water. In between bathing and readying themselves for the battle ahead, he bent her over a large rock sitting in the water and drove her to the same heights of passion that he had hours earlier. His hands framed and locked with hears against the hard surface of rock as he took her from behind, his voice filling her ears as the stole one last moment of pleasure with each others.

Later as they finally set to cleaning, Jendrak had tied his amulet around her pale throat. Aliah touched the heavy carved stone and then looked at him, questions clear on her face. "Just in case I fall in battle today. You'll always have a place amongst the Aawule, should anything come of our time together." Jendrak turned and returned to the task of leaning up. It was a simple statement that carried a heavy way. There was no guarantee that either of them would survive it, but if he had his way, he'd see that Aliah survived if no one else.

When they were sated, cleaned and dressed they polished off the last of their food from the previous night and headed off following the Jun's trail. Leaving earlier gave them chance to catch the Jun still at their makeshift camp. Luck and the gods were on their side as things played out in their favor. Dismounting Jendrak tied her horse's reins to his saddle, his mare would make sure her horse didn't take off but she was also trained to come running when called.

The sky was only slightly growing lighter, but the fires of the Jun made seeing their camp all too well. Unsheathing his sword he nodded to Aliah and pointed right, the people from her village huddled together in a loose circle. There were a few Jun on guard but the rest were either sleeping or drinking. "Check on your people first. Then we make our move."

They needed to be completely sure of where everyone was before they made their move as well as knowing how many guards were actually watching them. Aliah gave him a nod and moved off silently into the bushes. Scattering the Jun's horses would been a good idea except for the fact they would need them to help get her people out of the area.

There were a few tents set u, but the majority were stretched out on bedrolls, spread out between the fires. From the looks of it because he could not get a good count of the horses they were at least ten to fifteen men strong and at most twenty. Not the best odds, but it could be much worse. At least they seemed to be fairly confident in themselves as two wineskins made the round between those who were awake.

Panic and disorder would further work to their advantage. His eyes strayed back to the horses, Aliah's horse would be useless for what was forming in his mind, but his mare was used to the tactic of running through camps, bucking and raising such a ruckus to make those watching think she was a demon.

As he waited, Jendrak looked around, making sure they had not missed any guards hidden on the outer perimeter and were thus walking straight into a trap. It didn't take long to satisfy himself that they still held the element of surprise and once he was he waited for Aliah to return.

A bird call sounded in the distance, a bird that sounded only during the height of the day. Jendrak smiled, it seemed at least one of his fellow Aawule was nearby and ready to lend his or her sword to the fray. He was in the middle of returning the call when Aliah returned to his side ducking down low. "What did you find?"

The call sounded again, on the move this time, they were moving into better position and waiting for the two of them to make their move. "We have some help it seems. We move on your word Aliah." The dark blue of the sky was slowly but steadily growing lighter. If they were going to do this they would have to go and go soon.

 

[SweetPeril]

After Aliah pledged her very life to the gods above, she lowered her sword and returned to Jendrak as he lay nude upon his burlap ground cover. She marveled at his magnificent body, at it's beauty and at its great strength and at its great power to pleasure a woman. She allowed her eyes to take him in from the furthest reaches of his scalp to his elegantly shaped feet.

Certainly, his flesh was sprinkled with scars, the evidence of countless, fierce mortal battles to the death. And yet here he was -- alive, breathing, sleeping deeply...though not so deeply as those whose lives had ended at his hand, at his blade. That night, he'd awakened something in her. he'd awakened her vulnerability but also had awakened her womanhood. As she'd ridden him, she'd felt immense. She'd felt a strength in her that she'd never known. Jendrak, this strange, wondrous primitive, had taken her into his arms and freed her from this barren orb of rock and dirt and had sent her spirit soaring.

She could still feel his monstrous cock plunging into her, penetrating her, casting aside the delicate flower that guarded her portal. His cock was indeed a mysterious, almost disembodied force, connected yet separate from Jendrak. She'd never seen one so large, so forceful, so embued with such an atavistic force.

And she wanted more. She lay down beside him holding his muscular body to herself. She reached down and placed her hand firmly, but with unquestioned respect and awe around his male organ. She caressed it gently, lightly, reverently. She then maneuvered her body down and slowly brought her lips to its majestic head. Aliah leaned in and kissed it with a love and tenderness she'd never known within her.

She took the tip into her mouth sucking, kissing, loving it. She licked the flaccid organ along the great length of this living, breathing shaft. Aliah smiled as it grew almost instantly and hardened. 'Now that's an example of male potency!' she thought. 'I've no doubt this thing of beauty has never let a lover of his down.'

He moaned softly, awakening to her ministrations. 'How easily sucking my cock has come to her,' Jendrak mused silently. 'Aliah was indeed built for the act of love...and yet, she's also built for death.' He opened his eyes and admired her image as she sucked hungrily of his manhood. And then, as he looked at her lovely face at his loins, another thought came easily to mind. He expressed his thought aloud to her: "On this day Aliah," he stated for his benefit as much as for hers, "you will slaughter many Jun." With that, she plunged his cock deeply into her mouth and the profound image of gory bloodshed of those that were soon to die at her hand thrust into both of their psyches. As Jendrak imagined his lover covered in an orgy of vanquished Jun blood, he exploded in Aliah's mouth, his hot, manly seed gushing down her throat as she swallowed with alacrity.

She looked up at her spent warrior, her perfectly satiated lover and smiled knowing his thoughts. She then curled up in his arms and fell asleep both protected and protecting.

That morning, they said very little upon awakening. They gathered their things, and went into the water to bathe. Each wiping off the grime, the sweat, the juice of the night before. Before leaving the water, Jendrak was again overcome by her beauty and suddenly twisted her away from him thrusting her down over a large boulder in the stream.

The movement forced her lush, womanly buttocks high in the air. He marveled at her splendid cheeks, her powerful thighs. He looked to the flower now violently exposed to him. Hardening instantly, he moved his remorseless hands to her hips immobilizing her wanting body. He pushed her down deeper thus raising her bottom even more.

He brought his cock to meet her sex and slowly plunged it in as he fucked her proudly, boldly, making her his own. She came hard and fast, screaming in pleasure at his forcefulness, his masculinity. Aliah felt as he slowly pulled out after her orgasm.

She noticed however, that after doing so, he failed to release her. Her beautiful buttocks remained immobilized by his powerful grasp. She wondered at this when suddenly, a strange inexplicable sensation came over her. She felt his touch, or rather the touch of his cock back sliding again between her twin cheeks...but not to again sink into her flower, her cunt. Still unable to move, nor did she even try, she felt his enormous organ make contact with her anus.

It startled her though she made no effort to fight off his manhood. She felt it part and widen her hole as it entered. Instinctively, she bent over harder to spread her cheeks apart that much more to given him entry. At last, he thrust spiritedly into her. Deep into her. He thrust harder and harder, a wild, savage beast.

Never had she felt more subservient.

Never had she felt more feminine.

Never had she felt more...powerful.

At last, his seed jerked into her rectum. By opening her buttocks to him...she'd made this savage man her own. At last he pulled away in bliss. she slowly, painfully straightened up and turned to him.

She placed his hands upon her precious breasts urging him to savor these unparalleled physical endowments, urging him to feel as her teats swelled and hardened. She placed her hands upon his. squeezing them, squeezing herself. She reached around him hugging him, kissing him forcefully on the lips.

She pulled solemnly away. "Jendrak. Together, Let us slaughter many Jun."

 

[AngelofDeath]

Before Aliah could answer him, there was a scream from the camp, the both of them turning, though in Jendrak's case it also included grabbing a hold of Aliah's arms to keep her from rushing to the aid of the screaming young woman as she was dragged from where the other villagers sat or stood in their circle. As he walked the Jun continued to take sips from his wineskin, it was clear what he had in mind as he passed the others who either leered or laughed.

They could no longer afford to wait and Aliah would get herself killed charging in without a clear head. Just as the Jun was vanishing into his tent, Jendrak gave a sharp whistle. His mare went charging down the hill at full stop. One she reached the center of the encampment, she bucked, stomped and otherwise harassed the half drunken Jun. Giving Aliah a nod Jendrak drew his sword and headed down int he opposite direction from her.

Just as his sword fell on the first Jun he reached, arrows whistled through the air picking off the guards surrounding Aliah's people. Screams as shouts filled the air as what peace there had been that morning was shattered. Now and then he would Look Aliah's way as she cut through the Jun, just to make sure she was still standing alive, before turning to the task at hand.

His blade sung as it sliced through air, bone and flesh. The blows that got past him blocks went unnoticed as his mind focused on the task at hand which was killing all of his enemies. In the middle of it all Aliah was never far from her mind as the villagers scattered like sheep from the fray. As he plunged his sword into one charging man, another scream rang out.

Turning his head he watched as one Jun made for a horse, dragging a girl with him. His hands never touched the reins as an arrow pierced his throat out of the growing morning light, giving the girl time to run out of the way.

A hard blow spun Jendrak just as the warning came from Aliah. Grimacing through the pain as blood ran down his arm, Jendrak dropped his sword and pulled his knife. With a shout of rage he tackled the Jun who had struck him, the two of them tumbling further down the hill and away from the main fight. Fists and knife blades swung and shone in the light as the two bloody men got to their feet. Palming the hilt of the knife Jendrak traded blows with the man back and forth, ignoring the burning pain in his arm.

 

[SweetPeril]

Aliah watched as Jendrak went after the cluster of Jun soldiers wreaking havoc with each blow of his expertly wielded sword. She'd called out to him a moment too late as a serendipitous blow struck his arm. Horrified, she watched the two men wrestling in the dirt, and saw them roll over the precipice of the hill they were on and down the rocky slope out of sight.

Rapidly collecting her thoughts, she resolved that Jendrak could take care of himself even considering that it was the other Jun whose life was soon to be terminated. She charged through a line of half-inebriated degenerates, separating each from his life. At last, she reached the tent where the young woman had been dragged to. Taking a deep breath, eyes flashing with anger, her well-bloodied sword held high, she burst in.

The woman had already been summarily stripped naked and lay supine, her thighs spread far apart, her sex exposed to the hideous Jun straddled above her. Hearing Aliah enter, he turned only to see the proud, powerful warrioress standing at the tent opening. Aliah regarded his throbbing erection for an instant deciding then and there that the organ's intended purpose would never again be achieved.

The Jun rolled off his prey reaching for his sword before Aliah, in one quick, devastatingly precise stroke excised his very manhood. The stricken soldier screamed in both mental and physical agony as he realized the fate he'd borne. Blood poured from the stump left by his severed penis and he turned white as his life force ebbed inexorably forth. He collapsed in a heap on his back. Aliah stepped over him and their eyes met. He looked up to her in abject terror, both of his hands attempting to staunch the bleeding. Savagely, she grimaced down at him, her anger over what he'd attempted to do to the young woman beside him a mere hint of that which she'd felt towards the Jun.

She glanced at the woman who was filled with utter disgust and revulsion at the man who would rob her of her feminine essence. Aliah then placed the point of her sword to his heaving belly her eye still directed to her countrywoman. A moment passed between the two females. At last, the woman stared steely at Aliah and she nodded. Aliah accepted the woman's implicit judgment and hardly looking at the shell of an enemy beneath her, buried her sword into his body. The Jun's eyes remained open though his soul fell downwards to the netherworld.

Aliah looked at the nude woman as she lay upon the ground. She was filthy, sweaty, and clearly dehydrated and yet there was a quiet dignity about her. She was soft and delicate and clearly beautiful with a lush, nubile physical form. "Your hell is over. I'll not let anything happen to you," Aliah stated with a confidence the other woman recognized as an undeniable fact.

With that, she rushed out of the tent and into a maelstrom of violence. By now a group of Jun was in the process of converging on Aliah. However, poorly disciplined, they bunched together facilitating the warrioress's progress in cutting them down one after another. At last, a phalanx of them charged her and seeing no other way, she abruptly retreated. She ran hard and fast towards the hill where she'd seen Jendrak fall locked in mortal combat. She knew that her best chance was to take a stand there and hope he'd ascend the slope having dispatched his adversary to help her.

Her hopes were soon realized as he rushed up the hill having left the Jun dead and dismembered at the bottom. There was a momentary relief in each other's face as they realized both were still alive. They then immediately set back to the task of extirpating the world of the evil the Jun had wrought to Aliah's people.

Both became aware of the expertly fired arrows that appeared to come from nowhere and everywhere that quickly pierced the chests of their enemy. Aliah was grateful though puzzled at their source but surely was not one to forgo the help.

Aliah and Jendrak fought savagely and in concert. Their movements were as though they'd been exquisitely choreographed together each reacting in perfect synchrony with the other. How like a ballet as Aliah would hold and immobilize a hapless Jun soldier while Jendrak killed him with a deft slash only to have their roles reversed as the situation warranted.

Aliah had noticed the expanding wound on Jendrak's arm but felt confident that it wasn't mortal. In fact she herself had suffered a superficial but bloody cut to her inner thigh. Her wound however didn't slow her one iota. In fact, she'd never felt more alive and in more control. Truly, she felt invincible. How many Jun had she killed? She'd lost count but surely they'd numbered over twenty. As she saw the dead at Jendrak's feet, she speculated that he had been as lucky.

At long last, after perhaps thirty or forty minutes...silence. The last of the Jun were dead. Wearily, Aliah and Jendrak looked at each other. The two fighters were bloodied, exhausted, and exhilarated. They approached, passion in their eyes and embraced...